There a lots of small villages straddling the main road between Scarborough and Thirsk. One of these small hamlets is called Brompton by Sawdon. You might easily drive through and think this is a pretty but unremarkable village. You would be wrong. The more observant will have noticed an interesting claim on the signs at both ends of the village. Under Brompton the sign reads - "Birthplace of Aviation".Now I always thought of the Wright brothers as the the founders of aviation but I should have known better. The father of aviation was .....a Yorkshireman of course - Sir GeorgeCayley by name.He is credited with the first major breakthrough in heavier-than-air flight and he worked over half a century before the development of powered flight, being acknowledged by the Wright brothers. He designed the first actual model of an aeroplane and also diagrammed the elements of vertical flight. So there you are, 50 years before the Wright brothers, this Yorkshireman from Brompton by Sawdon had already designed and flown an aircraft....follow the link if you don't believe me - you will be amazed at what this man did - I was. I have to admit though that I was more captivated by this crystal clear stream bathed in soft summer light. My viewpoint might make it appear I was stood in the middle but no - the stream turns sharply so I was high and dry on the right hand bank. You might think that one famous man and this wonderful view would be quite sufficient for such a small village but there's more.Why did I quote those famous lines as the title of this piece? Well guess what....William Wordsworth married Mary Hutchinson on the 4th October 1802 in All Saints' church situated in the village of.......yup..Brompton by Sawdon. It's true - you can see a copy of the marriage certificate in the church. I dare say that Sir George attended the ceremony unless he was off flying or inventing! I have certainly enjoyed finding out more about this unassuming place as well as being inspired by its beauty.

Loved the story. Being British born it has even more meaning. You are so lucky to be able to visit and paint in the English countryside. It is so beautiful.

Reply

Glenn Marshall

18/10/2013 09:50:39 am

Hi Jean,
I'm sure there is great beauty wherever you are too - it's a beautiful world. However I do appreciate living where I do. This was a real surprise when I found out the rich heritage of this tiny village.